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Tuesday, January 3, 2017

Day 3 - Solo Travel Guide

My mom at the Kedarkantha Trek

Hey guys!

Solo trips can be a little tricky especially if it's your first time. When not planned well you may end up getting really bored and not have a good time. If you have been following our blog for a while then you must already know that I went on my first solo trip last year as a birthday gift to myself. You can read the entire story right here. That post has also been our most popular one till now. (Shameless self promo!)

After my trip a lot of my friends called me brave and daring for travelling till the Himalayas all by myself, but I must tell you that it wasn't risky at all! It was in fact one of the smoothest trips I have ever been on. So for today's post I will share with you guys my personal travel tips that helped me a lot on my solo trip.

1. Be fearless. The first and the most important tip is to not be afraid of your first solo trip. Do not have any second thoughts because trust me it's going to be the best trip of your life. I must admit that I wasn't quite confident about travelling all alone at first but after going alone once I cannot wait for another one. Travelling alone is a surreal experience in itself!

2. Get in touch with a good certified travel organization. Now I know you must be thinking that how are you supposed to explore a new place when you have an itinerary issued by an organization but that is not what I mean. Just packing your bags and leaving only works in movies but in real life you have to plan something before hand. A travel organization will help you with everything from airport pick up/drops to your hotel bookings. Do not sign up for any group activities but just take their help for the initial things. Most of the organizations right now are very flexible and non-intrusive. I traveled with Trek The Himalayas and explored the locality my way!

3. Make sure your hotel is in the prime location with easy access to public transport. It is very important to have easy access to all the areas you want to visit otherwise you will be travelling most of the time instead of actually experiencing the place. This is where your organization can really help you because what you generally see on the Internet is not how it looks in reality. I got a lovely cozy room thanks to my organizer. You can also choose to book in a hostel. That will get you in touch with like minded travelers.

4. Carry all kinds of medicines that you might need. If you are travelling to a remote place then having all your medicines in hand can be very helpful. Also ALWAYS have a sanitizer handy.

5. Socialize. Talk to the owner of the little cafe you liked or to the travelers you met on the way. You will meet a lot of people while eating or exploring or even when you are just sitting in a place with a spectacular view. Talk to all of them! Traveling is ultimately about all the amazing people you meet and all the lovely conversations you have with them. Those are the kind of memories you'd cherish for a lifetime.

6. Travel light. You might have a lot of sudden plans on your trip and traveling light just makes it easy to handle your own baggage. You should know that nobody is going to help you carry your stuff around. I suggest you invest in a rucksack and take that everywhere.

7. Keep your essentials close. Always have a tiny bag with an extra pair of clothes especially if you are traveling by the sea because you never know when you'd feel like jumping into the water!

8. Learn to say no. Now when you are alone there may be a lot of overly friendly locals. You need to say no when required. Be careful of the people you talk to because when I say socialize I do not mean become best friends with them. Also never let anyone drop you back till your hotel. Its always better to be safe.

9. Always have your id in hand. Carry an id everywhere you go because in a lot of heritage places they will not let you in without a valid id.

10. Don't be lazy. You might sleep in till late when you are at home but do not do that on a trip. Have an early start everyday so that you can make the most of the trip.

11. A mini waterproof folder for all your important documents. You need to have a small folder in which you can keep your essentials like flight tickets or passport or whatever papers you require for the trip.

12. Keep a few energy bars in your bag. Sometimes you are traveling in the outskirts and the nearest restaurant is very far away. Energy bars or chocolate bars are a great snack during such emergencies.

13. Research before leaving. Make sure you know what to expect when you reach in terms of weather and crowd. Also make a list of the few places that you really want to visit, it can be an eatery or an ashram or anything.

14. And finally, take it slow. It's okay to not see everything. Make sure every place you visit you feel the essence of it. It's more important to enjoy and live in the moment than plan where you are going to go next. The only way you will make beautiful memories is by opening your soul to the place you are in. Plus if you do miss out on a few places then that just gives you more reason to go back there again ;)

I really hope these tips will help you plan your next solo trip. Most of the tips are mainly pertaining to first-time solo travelers but they do help even otherwise. The thought of traveling solo can be very daunting at first but it is an amazing experience and after you go once you will not be able to stop yourself from planning another trip! :D

I think you may want to post a comprehensive carrying luggage guide too lol. I mean I always feel confused when I travel in and out around airport. Anyways your traveling tips are useful enough! Travel Merchants